What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4422466 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 4422466?

Compensation: Unlawful Termination: $750.00 awarded to tenant; Property Damage: $350.00 awarded to tenant; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4422466?

The primary dispute was Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4422466?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/8717517-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4422466 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 4422466?

Compensation: Unlawful Termination: $750.00 awarded to tenant; Property Damage: $350.00 awarded to tenant; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4422466?

The primary dispute was Exemplary damages.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4422466?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/8717517-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

1123 State Highway 14, Maungatapere, 9, Whangarei 0170 Tenancy Tribunal Case 4422466 — Exemplary damages

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4422466 — net $1,120.44 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Tenant	Reason
Exemplary damages: Bond not lodged within 23 working days	$350.00	Bond not lodged within 23 working days
Compensation: Unlawful termination	$750.00	Unlawful termination
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$1,120.44
Total payable by Landlord to Tenant	$1,120.44

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenant name and identifying details.
Waseem Muhammad must pay [The tenant/s] $1,120.44 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

Reasons

Background

Mr Muhammad purchased this property shortly before this tenancy began in August 2022.
Mr Muhammad has a market gardening business. His principal interest in the property was the horticultural land that surrounds the house.
Ms Wilkinson acted as de facto property manager for Mr Muhammad. Neither Mr Muhammad nor Ms Wilkinson have experience with residential tenancies.
Ms Wilkinson’s [relative], Harley, was seeking accommodation at that time.
Harley was a neighbour of [The tenant/s]. His young daughter was a friend of [The tenant/s] and her children.
Harley and [The tenant/s] made an agreement to share the house. [The tenant/s] submitted that the understanding was that Harley would acquire a house bus and live in the bus, and his daughter would share the main house with [The tenant/s] and her children.
The parties entered into a written tenancy agreement with [The tenant/s] as the sole named tenant.
Ms Wilkinson submitted that this was done to assist [The tenant/s] with WINZ payments, and the understanding was always that Harley was a joint tenant.
[The tenant/s] denied that there was any such agreement or understanding.
After moving in, tensions arose between [The tenant/s] and Harley.
Harley was occupying the garage. On 20 September 2022, Harley changed the lock on the back door, which is between the laundry / bathroom and the garage.
This was [The tenant/s]’ only means of securing the house.
On the morning of 23 September 2022 [The tenant/s] raised this issue with Mr Muhammad’s brother, who was at the property at the time.
Later that same day, Ms Wilkinson delivered a notice to terminate the tenancy.
This first notice gave Ms Wilkinson 7 weeks to vacate the premises. The stated reason for termination is that extensive repairs were required.
Ms Wilkinson subsequently sought advice, and came to understand that landlords must give 90-days’ notice to terminate for this reason.
Ms Wilkinson issued a second notice, backdated to 22 September 2022, to terminate the tenancy on 21 December 2022.
[The tenant/s] left the property on 8 November 2022, the termination date on the original notice.
[The tenant/s]’s application, which was filed on 18 October 2022, sought exemplary damages for non-lodgement of the bond, and compensation / exemplary damages for unlawful / retaliatory termination, and breach of quiet enjoyment.
On 20 November 2022 [The tenant/s] filed a written submission which added several exemplary damages claims and also sought name suppression.
The hearing took place in [Event location suppressed]. Ms Wilkinson, Mr Muhammad, and [The tenant/s] attended the hearing. Bond
Landlords must lodge any bond payments with the Bond Centre within 23 working days of receipt (section 19(1)(b) Residential Tenancies Act 1986).
Failure to do this is an unlawful act (section 19(2) RTA).
Section 109 RTA states that the Tribunal may award exemplary damages if it is satisfied that an unlawful act was committed intentionally. In considering an appropriate award of exemplary damages the Tribunal must have regard to: a. The intention of the person who committed the unlawful act; and b. The effect of the unlawful act; and c. The interests of the person against whom the act was committed; and d. The public interest.
Ms Wilkinson submitted that she did not lodge the bond because she wanted to wait and see whether the arrangement with [The tenant/s] and Harley would work out. At the end of the tenancy, [The tenant/s]’ share of the bond was refunded to her promptly.
The landlord did not meet its legal duty. It is appropriate to make an award of exemplary damages. The maximum award of exemplary damages for this unlawful act is $1,500.00.
In considering an appropriate award of exemplary damages I have had to: a. The section 109 factors listed above. b. The fact that Ms Wilkinson and Mr Muhammad are inexperienced landlords. c. The stress and uncertainty experienced by [The tenant/s] as a consequence of her bond not being lodged.
I will award exemplary damages of $400.00. Termination
[The tenant/s] submitted that: a. The landlord was already aware of the roof leak problem, and she was told that Harley was going to be working on repairs. b. The termination notice was prompted by her raising a complaint about Harley changing the lock on the back door. She was given the notice the same day that she raised the complaint. c. Harley did not move out at the same time as she did, and it appeared that he was going to continue living at the house after she left. d. The termination caused her significant stress and inconvenience. Her children attend [redacted] school, and she works part time in [redacted]. She found it very difficult to find another rental property in this area. She ended up staying in a cabin on her father’s property.
Ms Wilkinson submitted that: a. The landlord was not aware of the leaking roof at the beginning of the tenancy. There was no understanding that Harley was moving in in order to work on the roof. b. The landlord only became aware of the leak after Harley moved in and was living in the garage. He noticed the leak and told the landlord about the roof pitch issue. c. [The tenant/s] told her about the problems that she was having with Harley. [The tenant/s] told her several times that she intended to move out. d. Ms Wilkinson thought that it would help [The tenant/s] if she gave her notice to terminate the tenancy. Ms Wilkinson thought that this might ‘look better’ to prospective landlords than if [The tenant/s] gave notice to terminate the tenancy after only a few months. e. The roof leak and roof pitch issue do need to be dealt with. Unfortunately, the difficult weather conditions in Northland over spring and summer meant that the landlord’s income from his market gardening business was significantly less than anticipated. f. Harley vacated the property after [The tenant/s] left. g. The property has now been re-let.
Section 51(2) RTA states that a landlord may terminate a periodic tenancy by giving at least 90-days’ notice if: Extensive alterations, refurbishment, repairs or redevelopment of the premises are to be carried out by the landlord or owner and – i. It would not be reasonably practicable for the tenant to remain in occupation while the work is undertaken; and ii. The work is to begin, or material steps towards it are to be taken, within 90 days after the termination date.
Section 54 RTA states that the Tenancy Tribunal may make an order declaring that a “notice terminating the tenancy, being a notice that complies with the requirements of section 51” is of no effect if the Tribunal is satisfied that: In giving the notice the landlord was motivated wholly or partly by the exercise or proposed exercise by the tenant of any right, power, authority or remedy conferred on the tenant by the tenancy agreement or by this or any other Act or any complaint by the tenant against the landlord relating to the tenancy.
This is known as a retaliatory notice.
Section 54(3) states that the giving of such a notice is an unlawful act. Exemplary damages of up to $6,500.00 can apply.
Section 60AA states that a landlord commits an unlawful act if they give notice to terminate a tenancy “knowing they are not entitled, under this Act, to give the notice. Exemplary damages of up to $6,500.00 can apply.
My findings are: a. The first termination notice, which gave 42 days’ notice, was not a valid termination notice per section 51 RTA. Landlords must give 90-days’ notice if they wish to terminate a tenancy on the grounds of extensive repairs, renovations, etc. b. The second termination notice did attempt to give 90-days’ notice, but the notice period was calculated from 22 September 2022. This was not the date that the second notice was given to [The tenant/s]. Therefore, the second termination notice was also not valid. c. Per section 54 RTA, the Tribunal may only declare an otherwise valid termination notice to be a retaliatory notice. Therefore, there is no legal basis for me to consider an award of exemplary damages under this section. d. I also consider that this is not an example of a landlord issuing a termination notice “knowing they a rot entitled to give the notice”, and therefore I will not make an award of exemplary damages under s 60AA RTA. I accept that Ms Wilkinson genuinely believed that not only was she entitled to give notice but that she was assisting [The tenant/s] in doing so. e. However, I consider that it is appropriate to make an award of compensatory damages. [The tenant/s] left the tenancy because she was given a termination notice. The termination notice was defective in two respects: i. The notice period was incorrect; and ii. The ‘extensive repairs’ grounds for termination includes a requirement that “the work is to begin, or material steps towards it are to be taken, with 90 days after the termination date”. In this instance no steps have been taken towards carrying out the repair work, and the property has now been re-rented. f. In considering an appropriate award of compensation I have had regard to the following factors: i. The termination of the tenancy caused significant stress and inconvenience for [The tenant/s]. ii. [The tenant/s] was seriously considering terminating the tenancy herself. By her own evidence, the arrangement with Harley had become untenable. iii. Although [The tenant/s] holds the landlord responsible for the situation with Harley, and considers that the landlord inappropriately sided with Harley against her, having heard the submissions of both parties it is not obvious to me that is the case. Any house sharing / flatting arrangements carry a risk that the relationships might not work. iv. Ms Wilkinson’s notices were (with all due respect) clumsy, but I accept that they were well intentioned. g. Having regard to these factors I will award compensation of $750.00. Other issues
The other issues raised in [The tenant/s]’ submission dated 20 November 2022 relate to: a. General allegations of breach of quiet enjoyment / harassment; b. Failing to properly address the change of locks. c. Failure to provide a healthy homes report. d. Failure to provide a receipt for the bond payment.
I acknowledge that the tenancy was unsatisfactory from [The tenant/s] perspective, and the landlords’ inexperience has in some respects contributed to that.
However, I am satisfied that the awards of exemplary damages and compensation detailed above appropriately compensate [The tenant/s] and penalise the landlord. Filing fee, name suppression
[The tenant/s] has been largely successful in her application. Name suppression is granted per s 95A(1) RTA.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4422466 — net $1,120.44 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Tenant	Reason
Exemplary damages: Bond not lodged within 23 working days	$350.00	Bond not lodged within 23 working days
Compensation: Unlawful termination	$750.00	Unlawful termination
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$1,120.44
Total payable by Landlord to Tenant	$1,120.44

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenant name and identifying details.
Waseem Muhammad must pay [The tenant/s] $1,120.44 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

Reasons

Background

Mr Muhammad purchased this property shortly before this tenancy began in August 2022.
Mr Muhammad has a market gardening business. His principal interest in the property was the horticultural land that surrounds the house.
Ms Wilkinson acted as de facto property manager for Mr Muhammad. Neither Mr Muhammad nor Ms Wilkinson have experience with residential tenancies.
Ms Wilkinson’s [relative], Harley, was seeking accommodation at that time.
Harley was a neighbour of [The tenant/s]. His young daughter was a friend of [The tenant/s] and her children.
Harley and [The tenant/s] made an agreement to share the house. [The tenant/s] submitted that the understanding was that Harley would acquire a house bus and live in the bus, and his daughter would share the main house with [The tenant/s] and her children.
The parties entered into a written tenancy agreement with [The tenant/s] as the sole named tenant.
Ms Wilkinson submitted that this was done to assist [The tenant/s] with WINZ payments, and the understanding was always that Harley was a joint tenant.
[The tenant/s] denied that there was any such agreement or understanding.
After moving in, tensions arose between [The tenant/s] and Harley.
Harley was occupying the garage. On 20 September 2022, Harley changed the lock on the back door, which is between the laundry / bathroom and the garage.
This was [The tenant/s]’ only means of securing the house.
On the morning of 23 September 2022 [The tenant/s] raised this issue with Mr Muhammad’s brother, who was at the property at the time.
Later that same day, Ms Wilkinson delivered a notice to terminate the tenancy.
This first notice gave Ms Wilkinson 7 weeks to vacate the premises. The stated reason for termination is that extensive repairs were required.
Ms Wilkinson subsequently sought advice, and came to understand that landlords must give 90-days’ notice to terminate for this reason.
Ms Wilkinson issued a second notice, backdated to 22 September 2022, to terminate the tenancy on 21 December 2022.
[The tenant/s] left the property on 8 November 2022, the termination date on the original notice.
[The tenant/s]’s application, which was filed on 18 October 2022, sought exemplary damages for non-lodgement of the bond, and compensation / exemplary damages for unlawful / retaliatory termination, and breach of quiet enjoyment.
On 20 November 2022 [The tenant/s] filed a written submission which added several exemplary damages claims and also sought name suppression.
The hearing took place in [Event location suppressed]. Ms Wilkinson, Mr Muhammad, and [The tenant/s] attended the hearing. Bond
Landlords must lodge any bond payments with the Bond Centre within 23 working days of receipt (section 19(1)(b) Residential Tenancies Act 1986).
Failure to do this is an unlawful act (section 19(2) RTA).
Section 109 RTA states that the Tribunal may award exemplary damages if it is satisfied that an unlawful act was committed intentionally. In considering an appropriate award of exemplary damages the Tribunal must have regard to: a. The intention of the person who committed the unlawful act; and b. The effect of the unlawful act; and c. The interests of the person against whom the act was committed; and d. The public interest.
Ms Wilkinson submitted that she did not lodge the bond because she wanted to wait and see whether the arrangement with [The tenant/s] and Harley would work out. At the end of the tenancy, [The tenant/s]’ share of the bond was refunded to her promptly.
The landlord did not meet its legal duty. It is appropriate to make an award of exemplary damages. The maximum award of exemplary damages for this unlawful act is $1,500.00.
In considering an appropriate award of exemplary damages I have had to: a. The section 109 factors listed above. b. The fact that Ms Wilkinson and Mr Muhammad are inexperienced landlords. c. The stress and uncertainty experienced by [The tenant/s] as a consequence of her bond not being lodged.
I will award exemplary damages of $400.00. Termination
[The tenant/s] submitted that: a. The landlord was already aware of the roof leak problem, and she was told that Harley was going to be working on repairs. b. The termination notice was prompted by her raising a complaint about Harley changing the lock on the back door. She was given the notice the same day that she raised the complaint. c. Harley did not move out at the same time as she did, and it appeared that he was going to continue living at the house after she left. d. The termination caused her significant stress and inconvenience. Her children attend [redacted] school, and she works part time in [redacted]. She found it very difficult to find another rental property in this area. She ended up staying in a cabin on her father’s property.
Ms Wilkinson submitted that: a. The landlord was not aware of the leaking roof at the beginning of the tenancy. There was no understanding that Harley was moving in in order to work on the roof. b. The landlord only became aware of the leak after Harley moved in and was living in the garage. He noticed the leak and told the landlord about the roof pitch issue. c. [The tenant/s] told her about the problems that she was having with Harley. [The tenant/s] told her several times that she intended to move out. d. Ms Wilkinson thought that it would help [The tenant/s] if she gave her notice to terminate the tenancy. Ms Wilkinson thought that this might ‘look better’ to prospective landlords than if [The tenant/s] gave notice to terminate the tenancy after only a few months. e. The roof leak and roof pitch issue do need to be dealt with. Unfortunately, the difficult weather conditions in Northland over spring and summer meant that the landlord’s income from his market gardening business was significantly less than anticipated. f. Harley vacated the property after [The tenant/s] left. g. The property has now been re-let.
Section 51(2) RTA states that a landlord may terminate a periodic tenancy by giving at least 90-days’ notice if: Extensive alterations, refurbishment, repairs or redevelopment of the premises are to be carried out by the landlord or owner and – i. It would not be reasonably practicable for the tenant to remain in occupation while the work is undertaken; and ii. The work is to begin, or material steps towards it are to be taken, within 90 days after the termination date.
Section 54 RTA states that the Tenancy Tribunal may make an order declaring that a “notice terminating the tenancy, being a notice that complies with the requirements of section 51” is of no effect if the Tribunal is satisfied that: In giving the notice the landlord was motivated wholly or partly by the exercise or proposed exercise by the tenant of any right, power, authority or remedy conferred on the tenant by the tenancy agreement or by this or any other Act or any complaint by the tenant against the landlord relating to the tenancy.
This is known as a retaliatory notice.
Section 54(3) states that the giving of such a notice is an unlawful act. Exemplary damages of up to $6,500.00 can apply.
Section 60AA states that a landlord commits an unlawful act if they give notice to terminate a tenancy “knowing they are not entitled, under this Act, to give the notice. Exemplary damages of up to $6,500.00 can apply.
My findings are: a. The first termination notice, which gave 42 days’ notice, was not a valid termination notice per section 51 RTA. Landlords must give 90-days’ notice if they wish to terminate a tenancy on the grounds of extensive repairs, renovations, etc. b. The second termination notice did attempt to give 90-days’ notice, but the notice period was calculated from 22 September 2022. This was not the date that the second notice was given to [The tenant/s]. Therefore, the second termination notice was also not valid. c. Per section 54 RTA, the Tribunal may only declare an otherwise valid termination notice to be a retaliatory notice. Therefore, there is no legal basis for me to consider an award of exemplary damages under this section. d. I also consider that this is not an example of a landlord issuing a termination notice “knowing they a rot entitled to give the notice”, and therefore I will not make an award of exemplary damages under s 60AA RTA. I accept that Ms Wilkinson genuinely believed that not only was she entitled to give notice but that she was assisting [The tenant/s] in doing so. e. However, I consider that it is appropriate to make an award of compensatory damages. [The tenant/s] left the tenancy because she was given a termination notice. The termination notice was defective in two respects: i. The notice period was incorrect; and ii. The ‘extensive repairs’ grounds for termination includes a requirement that “the work is to begin, or material steps towards it are to be taken, with 90 days after the termination date”. In this instance no steps have been taken towards carrying out the repair work, and the property has now been re-rented. f. In considering an appropriate award of compensation I have had regard to the following factors: i. The termination of the tenancy caused significant stress and inconvenience for [The tenant/s]. ii. [The tenant/s] was seriously considering terminating the tenancy herself. By her own evidence, the arrangement with Harley had become untenable. iii. Although [The tenant/s] holds the landlord responsible for the situation with Harley, and considers that the landlord inappropriately sided with Harley against her, having heard the submissions of both parties it is not obvious to me that is the case. Any house sharing / flatting arrangements carry a risk that the relationships might not work. iv. Ms Wilkinson’s notices were (with all due respect) clumsy, but I accept that they were well intentioned. g. Having regard to these factors I will award compensation of $750.00. Other issues
The other issues raised in [The tenant/s]’ submission dated 20 November 2022 relate to: a. General allegations of breach of quiet enjoyment / harassment; b. Failing to properly address the change of locks. c. Failure to provide a healthy homes report. d. Failure to provide a receipt for the bond payment.
I acknowledge that the tenancy was unsatisfactory from [The tenant/s] perspective, and the landlords’ inexperience has in some respects contributed to that.
However, I am satisfied that the awards of exemplary damages and compensation detailed above appropriately compensate [The tenant/s] and penalise the landlord. Filing fee, name suppression
[The tenant/s] has been largely successful in her application. Name suppression is granted per s 95A(1) RTA.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4422466 — Exemplary damages at 1123 State Highway 14, Maungatapere, 9, Whangarei 0170

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4422466 — Exemplary damages at 1123 State Highway 14, Maungatapere, 9, Whangarei 0170

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions